is that what president obama calls it? and now could that bump in the road turn into a major roadblock for president obama's campaign? republicans tearing into the president for downplaying the violence in the middle east. in a tv interview last night president obama referring to the recent outbreaks of anti-american violence as "bumps in the road." >> have recent events in the middle east given you any pause about your support for the governments that have come to power following the arab spring? >> well, i said even at the time that this is going to be a rocky path. the question presumes that somehow we could have stopped this wave of change. i think it was absolutely the right thing for us to do to align ourselves with democracy, universal rights, a notion that people have to be able to participate in their own governance, but i was pretty certain and continue to be pretty certain that there are going to be bumps in the road. >> bumps in the road? we had an ambassador assassinated. we had a muslim brotherhood elect a me